Buck Woody : Book Review, SQL Serverhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/tags/Book+Review/SQL+Server/default.aspxTags: Book Review, SQL ServerenCommunityServer 2.1 SP2 (Build: 61129.1)Book review: Microsoft System Center Enterprise Suite Unleashedhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2010/05/06/book-review-microsoft-system-center-enterprise-suite-unleashed.aspxThu, 06 May 2010 12:33:49 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:24866BuckWoody0http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/comments/24866.aspxhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/commentrss.aspx?PostID=24866<p>I know, I know – what’s a database guy doing reading a book on System Center? Well, I need it from time to time. System Center is actually a collection of about 7 different products that you can use to manage and monitor your software and hardware, from drive space through Microsoft Office, UNIX systems, and yes, SQL Server. It’s that last part I care about the most, and so I’ve dealt with Data Protection Manager and System Center Operations Manager (I call it SCOM) in SQL Server. But I wasn’t familiar with the rest of the suite nor was I as familiar as I needed to be with the “Essentials” release – a separate product that groups together the main features of System Center into a single offering for smaller organizations. These companies usually run with a smaller IT shop, so they sometimes opt for this product to help them monitor everything, including SQL Server.</p> <p>So I picked up <a href="http://www.informit.com/store/product.aspx?isbn=0672333198" target="_blank">“Microsoft System Center Enterprise Suite Unleashed” by Chris Amaris</a> and a cast of others. I don’t normally like to get a technical book by multiple authors – I just find that most of the time it’s quite jarring to switch from author to author, but I think this group did pretty well here.&#160; The first chapter on introducing System Center has helped me talk with others about what the product does, and which pieces fit well together with SQL Server. </p> <p>The writing is well done, and I didn’t find a jump from author to author as I went along. The information is sequential, meaning that they lead you from install to configuration and then use. It’s very much a concepts-and-how-to book, and a big one at that – over 950 pages of learning! It was a pretty quick read, though, since I skipped the installation parts and there are lots of screenshots. While I’m not sure you’d be an expert on the product when you finish reading this book, but I would say you’re more than halfway there. I would say it suits someone that learns through examples the best, since they have a lot of step-by-step examples</p> <p>I do recommend that you take a look if you have to interact with this product, or even if you are a smaller shop and you’re the primary IT resource. The last few chapters deal with System Center Essentials, and honestly it was the best part of the book for me.</p><img src="http://sqlblog.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=24866" width="1" height="1">AdministrationBook ReviewSQL ServerWeekly Challenge – Tools for Thought Sitehttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2010/02/24/weekly-challenge-tools-for-thought-site.aspxWed, 24 Feb 2010 14:15:06 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:22599BuckWoody0http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/comments/22599.aspxhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/commentrss.aspx?PostID=22599<p>A good friend of mine years ago showed me this web site: <a href="http://www.rheingold.com/texts/tft/"><u><font color="#0000ff" size="3" face="Times New Roman">http://www.rheingold.com/texts/tft/</font></u></a>. </p> <p>I took my lunch hour each day for a week or so and read each “page” on this site. It deals with computer technology history in a way that I had never read before. As I study each new trend in computer and database technology, I still find this site to be very relevant. </p> <p>So my challenge to you is to read this site, from beginning to end. Tell me what you think, and if it makes an impact on you.</p><img src="http://sqlblog.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=22599" width="1" height="1">Book ReviewSQL ServerWeb